Joan Benoit Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles in the women's marathon, speaks during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. She's running this year in celebration of the 30th anniversary of her Olympic feat. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) less

Joan Benoit Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles in the women's marathon, speaks during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 ... more

Joan Benoit Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles in the women's marathon, right, watches footage of that event during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. She's running this year in celebration of the 30th anniversary of her Olympic feat. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) less

Joan Benoit Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles in the women's marathon, right, watches footage of that event during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on ... more

Event director George Regan, right, introduces Joan Benoit Samuelson during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. Benoit Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics, is running this year in celebration of the 30th anniversary of her Olympic feat. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) less

Event director George Regan, right, introduces Joan Benoit Samuelson during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. Benoit ... more

Rene Kalmer of South Africa is introduced during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)

Rene Kalmer of South Africa is introduced during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)

Maria Michta, a race walker who competed in the 2012 Olympics, is introduced during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union) less

Maria Michta, a race walker who competed in the 2012 Olympics, is introduced during a news conference to kick off the Frieihofer's 36th Run for Women on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 74 State Hotel in Albany, N.Y. ... more

Foreign competitors have dominated the Freihofer's Run for Women 5K for the past nine years and Saturday's latest edition promises to be no different.

However, there's a twist this time: One of the international entrants lives in Schenectady.

Alice Kamunya, 23, will try her first Freihofer's after moving to the Electric City from her native Kenya last September. She runs for Team CPOYA.com, sponsored by Dr. Tim Maggs, a Schenectady chiropractor.

"I'm looking forward (to it)," Kamunya said on Friday. "I'll try my best. My goal is to make 15-something (minutes). I can win."

Victory won't be an easy task in a elite group that includes two-time Freihofer's champion Mamitu Daska of Ethiopia, Lucy Kabuu of Kenya and Afera Godfay of Ethiopia.

Race director George Regan said there were more than 4,000 entrants who had registered by Friday at 4 p.m.

More Information

Freihofer's Run for Women

When: 9:45 a.m. Saturday

Where: Madison Avenue, Albany, in front of Empire State Plaza

Distance: 5k (3.1 miles)

More info

Albany police have put the following security precautions in place:

Backpacks/coolers/duffle bags will not be permitted at the race venue.

Anything brought on site, including runners' items for bag-check, must be transported in a clear plastic bag for easy inspection.

No animals, dogs or domestic pets (with the exception of service dogs) will be allowed on-site due to the presence of police dog patrols.

Photo identification is required.

All 5K participants should be on site by 8:45 a.m.

The forecast calls for temperatures in the low 60s when the race goes off at 9:45 a.m., far more favorable than last year when runners suffered in 79-degree heat.

"I remember last year being brutal conditions for racing," said Michelle Lilienthal, an Iowa City, Iowa, native who came in 11th a year ago. "It was still a great race and a fun race, but it'll be really nice to have it be cooler."

Regan said someone could break the course record of 15 minutes, 12 seconds set by Kenya's Emily Chebet in 2010. She also won the title last year but won't be around to defend her title because of a conflict with her training for the Commonwealth Games.

An American hasn't won the Freihofer's since the race was opened to international runners in 2005.

"I'm very happy to be able to participate in this great race," Daska said through an interpreter. "To win is that much additional happiness for me." Daska, who won back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012, didn't compete in the Freihofer's last year because of a scheduling conflict.

The favorite is Kabuu, a two-time Olympian for Kenya, according to Regan. She is coming off a victory in a 10-kilometer race in Bangalore, India, earlier this month.

Regan also questioned whether Daska can win only five days after coming in first in the Bolder Boulder (Colo.) 10K, run at high altitude on Memorial Day.

"I went to (Boulder) to break a record," Daska said. "Because of the weather, it was a little bit hot, I wasn't able to break the record. I expect tomorrow, if I get the chance, to break the (Freihofer's) record."

While the present belongs to runners like Daska and Kabuu, the future looks promising for Kamunya.

Maggs, the Schenectady doctor, brought Kamunya and other Kenyan runners to the United States to promote Concerned Parents of Young Athletes. He founded it with former Kenyan long-distance star Paul Mbugua, who lives in Kingston, to raise awareness of sports biomechanics in middle school and high school students.

Kamunya and three other Kenyan runners live in the Bellevue neighborhood of Schenectady and train in Rotterdam and at Mohonasen High School.

"After (Kamunya) got here, she came to my house and her big toe was sticking through the top of her shoe," Maggs said. "She had never had a new pair of running shoes. She came from poverty. She has total talent but not supported at all over there."

She has funding now. She won the Manchester (Conn.) 10K in November and will try for victory again in the Freihofer's.